„Inscription” XXII (2016)

TRANSFORMATION IS A SINE QUA NON FOR PERMANECE.

PARAPHRASES, CONTINUATIONS AND LITERARY ALLUSIONS

Transformation, the central theme of the issue, is understood in a very broad sense. It is not limited to the written works that were created through the ages (literary, occasional and applied texts). For we assume that the usage and understanding of literary allusions is a distinctive evidence of membership in a given culture that share the knowledge of a certain literary cannon which, in turn, confirms the community of value system. This cannon can be surprisingly long-lasting (continuations) or it can undergo modifications by changing itself for future generations and, thus, becoming a reflection of various cultural influences (a variety of paraphrases within a language, style , theme and tone; polemical and stylised references including parody and pastiche). We assumed that tradition, in order to stay alive, must be used and transformed – also in a dubious and iconoclastic way. This collection of articles is illustrated by a thesis in the title – it is the transformation that enables digestion, transformation is the sign of vital tradition and a condition of its existence.

The articles gathered in this issue raise such topics as the functioning of great literary characters and cultural myths in literature and popular culture (for example Prus or Dickens’s characters), “long digestion” of certain literary motifs and it transformations (such as Żmichowska’s poem), the use of well-known communication models in public discourse (in press and advertisement among others). Direct references to certain works (for example Bulgakov’s “The Master and Margarita”), literary polemics or adaptations among literary genres can be of inspiration. The reviews and editorial sections are also well represented.

The iconographic part of the issue constitute works with commentaries of Warsaw’s Academy of Fine Arts’ students who present their associations with the topic of transformation, passing away and change.

The issue is devoted to the memory of professor Janusz Tazbir, a long-standing member of “Inscription’s” Scientific Council.